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 History |
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History of the Stick
The history of the Javelin throw.
The first Javelin thrower in history is said to be the greek god Hercules.
Hercules had amazing strenght and physical abilility, performing difficult tasks and defeating
fierce enemies throughout his life. You can allready here see the similarities between Hercules
and todays Javelin "gods", who are also immensly strong and fit.
Javelin throw was introduced in the Games of 708 BC in two "different" events:
1. Throwing at a target
2. Distance throwing using a sling.
The original javelin was made of olive wood, measuring between 2.30m and 2.40m with a weight of 400 grams. The
Scandinavians adopted the event around 1780 and changed the sport completely. The javelin increased to 2.60m,weighed
800 grams (as it does today), and was of hickory wood. The Javelin throw became a national sport for the Finns, who
seem to produce more 80 meter throwers than Bill Gates produce computer programs.
In 1953 Franklin "Bud" Held (USA), invented a hollow javelin, which increased the surface area of the javelin by
27%,increasing the javelin's flight capability and causing the javelin to land horizontally, which was a revolution in
javelin throwing . In 1954 Held developed a metal variant, which went even further.
In 1966 the Spaniard Felix Erausquin threw over 100 metres using a rotational technique, which was banned by the IAAF
as too dangerous. The 100m barrier was broken again in 1984 by Uwe Hohn. The IAAF then established new rules for
the construction of the javelin to ensure shorter flight times and point first landings (safer and easier to measure). In 1991
the rules were changed to disqualify a new type of javelin with a 'rough' or corrugated tail design.
The first women's marks were recorded in Finland in 1916. Originally, a javelin weighing 800g was used but this was
later standardised at 600g. The women's javelin is going to change in 1999, where the center of gravity will be closer to
the point, making it fly shorter in the air and land with the tip down(there has been a lot of trouble with measuring
womens javelin throws.) The first IAAF world record dates back to 1932 while the event made its Olympic debut in 1948.
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